SpaceX successfully launched its Dragon cargo capsule to the International Space Station on February 19. The company also successfully landed its Falcon 9's first stage at Cape Canaveral.
The Falcon 9 launched from the Kennedy Space Center Launch Complex 39A, which is also the site the Apollo 11 mission used back in 1969 to send humans to the Moon, Tech Crunch reported. The launch complex was last used in 2011.
Two and a half minutes after the launch, the first and the second stage of the Falcon 9 rocket separated. The first stage was on its way back to earth, while the second had the Dragon spacecraft. Its solar arrays were successfully deployed and commenced its two-day journey to the station.
When the Dragon reaches the orbiting lab Tuesday morning, it will be grappled with by French astronaut Thomas Pesquet along with NASA's Shane Kimbrough with the use of the Canadarm2 robotic arm. Eight minutes after the spacecraft launched, the first stage made a successful landing on Cape Canaveral. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk captioned his Instagram post about the event with "baby came back," Space reported.
Meanwhile, NASA's Peggy Whitson will monitor Dragon's approach. After it is grabbed with the robotic arm, ground control will connect it to the space station. According to NASA officials, the Dragon cargo spacecraft carries science-focused materials.
According to International Space Station (ISS) program deputy manager Dan Hartman, they still have all the food and water they need, which is why the Dragon mission is focused on bringing them equipment to help further their research. The load that was transported contains some 800 works by scientists from all over the world.
The space station crew will immediately unload the materials and start working on experiments. Dragon carried a total of 5,500 lbs worth of weight, and will be bringing back about 5,000 lbs worth of weight back to Earth after 29 days.
Ultimately, the launch was a big success for SpaceX, whose Falcon 9 rocket exploded on pad LC40 back in September. Meanwhile, making a successful landing is also a big achievement for the company, as its previous spacecraft went down on floating ocean platforms in the past.
